The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-11-06
TRIMMINGS AND SMALL HAnEa
Fifty Gents . Day Big Wages fer Braid
Workers and Other Slaves OF tho Needle.

Fifty Gents . Day Big Wages fer Braid
Workers and Other Slaves OF tho Needle.
Many hundreds Of women, and most OF
Thorn once In better circumstances. have the
lash OF starvation piled over them by the manu-
facturers OF dress trimmings. artificial flowers.
and similar small goods. They are generally
found In more pretentious localities than the
slaves OF the sewing machine and ordinary
needle. and their work appears on the shelves
OF the fashionable bazaars on Twenty third
street. but all the profit that there Is In 1t goes
to others than those who do the work. The
wages arc tho same as In every other case
where women are compelled by circumstances
to accept to earn their bread try to- at their
homes. They get just the smallest amount that
will keep them out OF the workhouse.
Christine Berdick lives at $50 West Forty
ninth street and supports a paralyzed hus-
band. She makes passementerie trimming
for Mrs. Ohe OF 400 West Forty-sixth street.
She gets the heavy silk braid In large pieces
and makes 1t up on little slips Of brown paper,
on which the pattern is stamped. There are
four circles In the centre and three loops at
each end OF the pattern she Is working on
now There Is. besides, a little spider web pat
tern to be worked with black cotton in the
middle OF each circle. She has to sew the
braid to the paper over the pattern with white
basting thread and then wherever the braid
crosses to fasten 1t with black silk. 1t
takes yard OF braid to make each piece. and
for basting this on. fastening the joints. and
working the spider-web pattern she gets 20
cents for dozen pieces
when my husband was at the hospital"
she SAID. :" ! used to be able to make fifty cents
a day II worked twelve hours. Now he Is
home and ! cannot work so steadily. and the
most can do Ia thirty CENTS worth in n day.
Are there many Work at III WY you ought Il
full OF women getting work. It's starvation, OF
course, but we must do something The woman
she U was going to open anot her store soon. She
says she gets work from all over the country,
but s 9ot tee SouS any a Rsr
right from the stores myself, know could do
. good deal better. but Ican't get ahead enough
~ don't know what the. braid costs. but it
Isn't over ten cents yard, believe At whole
III S9ss nave
to make so much trimming out OF so much
weight. The only thing they trust to, our honor
that. The stun We make she sells for from a
dollar to dollar and half . yard. There are
abou, twelve cents she pays us for making 4.
For this particular pattern she charges 81 so"
s WSo No4 Rs oRe
happily, she says. she is not dependent on that
work s., for ia, LYING -. u,r. IN, .,.,,,n
she said. for II 1 work all day long the best |
can do Is to make forty cents worth. OF
course there's time lost going to the store and
back and other ways, so that those who WORK
Tor her regular must get even less unless they
work all night as well as all day. How any one
can live on such work don't see. There were
l60 yards OF braid In the last lot did. and all
/ got for making II up was ninety-hve cents."
SIZE oETs DOLLAR AND HALF HoR IT.
Mira oh!s's store r small one iRs. o. Ninth
are hllsd With the difierSnt sorts Of passsmsn-